X/18.Communication, education and public awareness and the International Year of Biodiversity

The Conference of the Parties,

Noting with appreciation the voluntary contributions provided for the programme of work on communication, education and public awareness (CEPA) during the biennium, and for the celebration of the International Year of Biodiversity, notably by the Governments of Japan, Canada, Spain, the Netherlands, and Norway,

Congratulating and expressing its gratitude to the Parties, Governments, organizations and stakeholders who celebrated the International Year of Biodiversity,

Underlining the importance of using the momentum in communication, education and public awareness initiated by the International Year of Biodiversity to support the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020 and the proposed United Nations Decade on Biodiversity for the period 2011-2020,

Acknowledging the importance of communication, education and public awareness in informing stakeholders on the importance of implementing the third objective of the Convention on Biological Diversity and its Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization and to ensure their effective participation,

1.Invites Parties to continue and further improve communication, education and public awareness activities for promoting awareness and education using the goals included in the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020, the framework of the Agenda for Action, and, where appropriate, the proposed United Nations Decade on Biodiversity, with the full and effective participation of all stakeholders, including indigenous and local communities;

2.Invites Parties, Governments and relevant organizations to establish focal points and implementation bodies for communication, education and public awareness activities at national, regional and global level, as proposed in priority activity 1 of the Agenda for Action and to communicate their establishment to the Executive Secretary;

3.Invites Parties to design and provide increased support for communication, education and public awareness activities that strengthen capacity for the implementation of the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization;

4.Requests the Executive Secretary to continue to support the work of Parties on communication, education and public awareness for implementation of the Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020, its mission and sub-targets, using the 10 priority activities in the Agenda for Action as a framework and in support of the proposed United Nations Decade on Biodiversity;

5.Invites Parties to work with the Executive Secretary, other relevant organizations and stakeholders, including indigenous and local communities, and including through the informal advisory committee on communication, education and public awareness, to use indicators and guidelines for survey methodologies as well as tools in order to organize and participate in national, regional and subregional assessments of the state of public awareness on biodiversity;

6.Requests that these results are reported to the Executive Secretary in advance of the eleventh meeting of the Conference of the Parties, with the goal of setting priorities for the programme of work for communication, education and public awareness in the following bienniums and to support the work of the proposed United Nations Decade on Biodiversity 2011-2020;

7.Invites Parties, Governments, international organizations and other relevant stakeholders, including indigenous and local communities, to forward to the Executive Secretary no later than 31 March 2011, reports of activities held to commemorate the International Year of Biodiversity, for inclusion in the official report to the United Nations General Assembly at its sixty-sixth session;

8.Invites the Executive Secretary to conduct an assessment of the results of the International Year of Biodiversity, using the Strategy for the International Year as the basis, and to communicate the assessment of the Conference of the Parties at its eleventh meeting.